Buying A Photoshop CS6 Laptop 2012
As many of you know I’m an early adopter of the Adobe CS6 Master Collection. One of the things I spent the better part of April and May doing is researching what Laptop I was going to buy to support CS6. One of the things I realized early on was this was going to need a lot of RAM. Some of you won’t believe this but all together I found a Laptop that could pull it off Equivalent to a Mac Book Pro for less than $400…
Buying a Photoshop Laptop in 2012 is a little different than it was in previous years. For one thing the graphics card isn’t just to take load off of the CPU anymore. Between OpenGL and the new Mercury Performance Engine in Photoshop CS6 it can enhance the performance and live draw renders dramatically.
Yes I know must be thinking I’m full of it or this machine can’t possibly handle Photoshop, but I will say that I did luck into a sale at Best Buy. Here are the specs for my Photshop Laptop:
Hardware Specs for ASUS Laptop
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium (64Bit OS)
Processors: Pentium R B960 Dual Core 2.2GHz Windows Subscore 6.1
RAM: 8GB DDR3 Windows Subscore 7.1
Hard Drive: 320GB HDD 5400RMP Windows Subscore: 5.9
Laptop Cost: $332.00
PNY 4GB Ram: $22.00
Total Before Taxes: $354.00
PHOTOSHOP LAUNCHES IN UNDER 5 SECONDS…
It’s all about knowing what you need to buy and how each spec effects the performance of the Program. It will perform even faster when hooked up to my external 7200RMP Hard Drive used as a Scratch Disk. Bear in mind this test also while I was running a screen recorder and had Firefox open as well, so no the test isn’t rigged.
The new features in Photoshop, Illustrator, Premier, and After Effects all take advantage of RAM as well as use both RAM and processing power more efficiently, as well as work with your Graphics Card to offset these.
Not only does it run Photoshop
Now I know what some of you are thinking, why would I prioritize running Adobe CS6 off of my Laptop. Well for those of you who don’t know I try to be a Green Graphic Designer. So I like that I can work on an energy star compliant machine and will work off the batter for 2-3 hours conserving energy, keeping my electricity bill low and supporting the environment. I also print as little as possible, print proofs very small and section and reuse parts of the paper, but I’ll write an article about Green Design workflows later.
Compare to a Mac Book PRO
So for all of you fanboys out there gushing over your Mac Book Pro’s I really want to see what your $1200 Dual Core 4GB Machine can do about my 8GB Monster at 1/3 of the price!!! Don’t get me wrong, I’ve used Mac’s I’ve enjoyed them, I still own one that was a gift, but they just aren’t practical for Design Professionals cost wise anymore.
Not only that but they ironically are not as compatible with Adobe Products as they used to be considering Adobe customers make up the higher end of their client base, that is a real problem.
Mac Book Pro Starter specs:
13-inch: 2.4 GHz $1200
- 2.4GHz dual-core Intel Core i5
- 4GB 1333MHz
- 500GB 5400-rpm1
- Intel HD Graphics 3000
- Built-in battery (7 hours)2
Lets take it a step further, for the price of that Mac Pro I can build my starter version of the Ultimate Photoshop CS6 PC, (which I will write about next week) and this Laptop with change left over to pay for half of my Acer Tablet which is equal or superior to a iPad2 for $100 less, and download the Adobe Touch Apps to have a complete studio setup hardware wise minus printers and wacom tablets.
Or…For the price of the Mac Book Pro I could jump over to NewEgg.com and grab a 16GB Laptop with a 3GB Dedicated Video Card and possibly 2 Hard Drives one of them being an SSD and it may even have a bluray player or burner. Perfect for working in Premier and After Effects as well as Photoshop and then burning the material for a presentation or final product.
Why this Photoshop Laptop Setup works so well…
Photoshop and nearly all the new Adobe CS6 Products take more advantage of the 64Bit OS and the ability to utilize Unlimited RAM. The more RAM you have that it can use the better. It also helps that they have already made the programs faster and more efficient. Add to that the fact that it can also use the real power of your Graphics Card for rendering base task, and RAM and Processing power for other task and now basically the Adobe CS6 programs can use your “Whole Machine” more effectively.
With that in mind RAM is the number 1 Priority followed by Processing Power and GPU/Graphics Card. Hard Drive speed can be an issue but this is fairly common and as long as you’re at least at 5400RPM you’ll be fine. 6GB of Ram is the minimum I recommend if you want to feel like you’re not waiting for things to happen while working in Photoshop, 8-16GB is the ideal for a Laptop and 16-32GB for a Desktop.
My original budget for a new Laptop was about $700 which is exactly what it should be to get something good, particularly if you want to work in Photoshop and Premier, but I found a Laptop that would get the job done for less than that because I did my homework, read reviews online and I can honestly say I’m more than satisfied with how it turned out. Do your research, and you will be fine.
By the way, I’ve read http://www.zdnet.com/blog/hardware/build-your-own-ultimate-adobe-photoshop-cs6-pc/19985 and while I agree with most of it, some of it is OVERKILL and I know how you can build an equivalent machine for your needs a little cheaper that prioritizes RAM and CPU.
Hi Robert, this is a great and helpful site.
I’m looking at building a pc for photoshop CS5 to get the benefits of openGL and the 3D elements of it. I keep coming across articles that say you need a really fast graphics card.
But are you saying that your new laptop can do this with it’s onboard graphics?
What is the model of your Asus m/c and I’ll try to locate it here in the UK.
Thanks again
Shuggy
Its Model: X54C-BBK17
SKU: 5218541 (Bestbuy)
You can also get the one below for less than $500 and upgrade the ram witha 4GB stick like I did. The one below has an i5 Processor.
http://deals.bestbuy.com//laptops/product/5218296/asus++156quot+laptop++4gb+memory++500gb+hard+drive++imr+matte+dark+brown+suit
I have a question if you kindly have the time. I’ve never run any Adobe product from a laptop, so am completely in the dark as to which way to go. I have to make the switch as soon I will be working from on the road most of the time. I have an opportunity to pick up a second hand Alienware, and the specs seem to look right. Will this handle master suite CS6 as well as some of these other laptops I have read about?
This hardware should more than handle it , just make sure the basic requirements of a 4GB minimum for Ram and 2.0GHz Dual core processor are met.
Hi Roberto, thanks for a really informative article. After struggling running CS4 Premiere Pro on a very old, low spec PC, I’ve decided to bite the bullet and get a new PC to run CS6 to which I’m upgrading soon. I’m going to go with your advice and get an Asus, although the X54C-BBK17 doesn’t seem to be available in the UK and I’m loathe to import due to import duty. Do you know what the difference is between the BBK17 and the SX026V? http://www.pcworldbusiness.co.uk/catalogue/item/P143868P?offer=dgm&gclid=CKzH7tLN6bECFY8mtAodIC8ATg
Or would any of these do? https://www.simplyasus.com/products/keywords/asus+x54/ex/clearance%2cdummy?gclid=CJKTi4nP6bECFY8mtAodIC8ATg
I’m thinking that as you did so much research into the subject you will be more clued up than me on the subject!
Also, will the Asus be capable of handling Premiere Pro or are you saying it’m mainly best for Photoshop? I use Premiere Pro, Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign but I really need PP to be able to function smoothly…
Thanks
Have liked your Facebook page btw 
In my case the Asus handle premier pro like a champ. Me and a friend of mine both have this laptop and use it to do your our Screen Recording and it renders those videos pretty quickly. If you watch the videos on my youtube channel where I work in Photoshop even in 3D you will see exactly what I mean. At some point I may do a review of Premier CS6 and screen record working in the interface. I edited and rendered my Unilimted Sketch Works video on this laptop and it was one of the best experiences I’ve had with Premier in years.
That sounds brilliant, thanks for your response. Any idea about my first question, the fact you can’t buy the model you’ve recommended in the UK?
Hmm, I don’t know why you can’t by that model in the UK but I will try to look into a model that is similar or better that you can buy in the UK as soon as I have a chance. Once good place to look though is Amazon, and if you can find one with a better graphics card that would be for the best. This one works great but I was working on my friend’s gaming laptop with a 2GB graphics card and Photoshop just sings when you have that!
> This one works great but I was working on my friend’s gaming laptop with a 2GB graphics card and Photoshop just sings when you have that!
That sounds like what I need. I have suffered through years of wasting hours of my life every week waiting for PS to respond and it has got to the stage where I just can’t do it any more! I’m looking into it too but you seem a lot more technical minded than I am so if you come up with any ideas of what to buy it would be much appreciated!
Hi again…this looks good: http://asuslaptop.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=X54C-SX127V and there’s a review of its graphics card here: http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/graphics/2010/01/25/intel-gma-hd-graphics-performance/1
Yeah this one looks promising I think you’ll do well with it.
Hi Roberto,
Great article! I was wondering – do you have any recommendations for an ultrabook (under 3 pounds or thereabouts) that has good enough specs to run CS6 well?
I know the screen size is going to feel tiny while Photoshopping, but I’m prepared to deal with that. It’s the weight that I’ve really got to keep down (going to be travelling for 6 months).
Thanks!
Hi Amanda, glad you enjoyed the Article. I will actually go ahead and write an Article this week on that since you requested it. I actually did come across some ultrabooks that may do the job while I was recently shopping for a Laptop for my sister that could also handle Photoshop and DAZ 3D.
Keeping checking back for it this week and I would love your comments on any other articles as well!
Hi Roberto
Fascinating article and I am with Amanda on the ultra as I do a fair bit of travelling. I use Premier cs6 and have been put off buying an ultra laptop, but some of the specs i7 with 6gb ram are tempting!Asus Zem look good but the Toshiba is light at 1.2kg and comes with 6gb ram and i5 processor.This should be enough. However it has been suggested that ultra laptops are proected from getting hot and may not be able to meet the demands of Premier1
I look forward to your views.
cheers
Hello Doug. Yeah you and Amanda are not the firs to bring this up though the only ones to comment on this post. I will be done writing this article sometime next week. I’ve been doing a little more research for you guys and have been referencing the Adobe Performance White Paper on best specs for handling different features of each application.
Stay tuned!
what is this particular asus model?
Asus X54C-BBK17
SKU: 5218541 (Bestbuy)
Hi, I’m having trouble finding this particular model. Do you mind listing alternatives? I hope to make a purcahes in the very near future.
I’ll write up a post on the topic since its getting a lot more request. Look for it next week here on the blog. Asus, Acer and Gateway are my most recommended Photoshop Laptops followed by Mac Book Pro (assuming you can afford the model with the right specs). I prefer the PC’s because of pricing, repair and upgrade scenarios and the fact I don’t use Mac specific software.
I use primarily Adobe Products even for Video Production and prefer Adobe Audition, Avid, Sony Acid and Cakewalk for Audio and Music, if I were a DJ and making money at it I would use Mac just because of Garage Band and Logic software not to mention, status symbol and aesthetic.
I am looking to purchase a laptop to use with CS6. Is this still the same laptop you would recommend since it’s now been 9 months since you wrote this article? I always hear how things are outdated so quickly. But if this was running your program just fine I should be able to purchase it at a good price if it’s “outdated”. lol
http://www.harveynorman.com.au/computers/computers/laptops
Hi Roberto
I would be purchasing the laptop from my local Harvey Norman store, the link is above. Would you consider taking a quick look for me and picking the best value option for me??
wondering if you could help me. I am an Australian artist who is looking to purchase a laptop to use as my portable design business. I wish to load up some adobe products perhaps even CS6.
I have no idea what ram, graphic card power, etc to look for. When I try to figure it out…all the info just swims around …makes me dizzy
Hi Rob, in your experience and of your friends, are i3 processors good enough Photoshop CS6? I know it passed the 2Ghz speed, but intel says it isn’t for photo editing (i5 is). Laptops with i5 cores are too expensive in my country. Thanks.
I3′s could handle it, but I5′s would be better, anything over the 2GHz could pull it off, I have no issues with Pentium B.
Well a lot of it depends on your price range. I bought the Asus that I did because I know it would fit my budget and my requirements. People still are wowed when I show them that I can do After Effects work on this laptop. I would say the ASUS VivoBook S56CM-XX013H Ultrabook is the best bang for the buck.
Ultimately I would still recommend this laptop (assuming you can find it) I have yet to run into performance issues with it, even running Adobe After Effects for some of the things you may have seen on my Youtube Channel it still works great and is in excellent condition. However I think now for around $650 you can get an Asus Laptop with 2GB of dedicated Video Memory (NVIDIA) and 6GB of ram, with a simple upgrade to 8GB you’re in good shape. Remember that the Processing power is only really about certain things in Photoshop, most everything is handled by the RAM and in CS6 the GPU, dual core 2GHz or higher processor is all the power you really need in that department, and as you know I work with large print files and even graphics to use in HD video over on the After Effects side.
Editing and Rendering Effects for say a 3 minute video in After Effects is not hard for this computer, again due to the 8GB of Ram.
Now if I were going to price and spec the ULTIMATE PHOTOSHOP CS6 LAPTOP, which I may do here soon, that’s another story. I also have a new Desktop recommendation that has a 6 Hard Drive configuration, but more on that later.
I would have to say that your best bet is: ASUS VivoBook S56CM-XX013H Ultrabook it has everything you need.
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About NYC Graphic Designer Roberto Blake
"For nearly my entire life I have pursued art in some form or fashion. My earliest background is that of an Illustrator, not a day goes by that I do not practice this craft; a growing interest in computers eventually lead me to Digital Illustration and Graphic Design, as well as Web Design."
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